Vocal Health Conditions

Functional Voice Disorders

Problem is with function, not anatomy, no clear visual evidence of pathology

Organic Voice Disorder

Problem is with the structures of the voice

Laryngitis

The catch all term for common organic voice disorders, included swelling and inflammation of the vocal folds

Scarring

Injury heals but leaves scar tissue, which affects how they can move

Benign Vocal Fold Lesions

Nodules, nodes, polyps, and cysts

Nodule

Dry tissue that thickens and hardens like a callous, a contact injury that happens when the vocal folds hit each other in a dry spot on one side that irritates the other

Polyp

Less superficial, more like a blister and usually filled with fluid

Cyst

Usually grow in that place, nothing you can do to prevent them and the solution is usually surgery not rehab

Epithelium (skin tissue of vocal folds)

Where vocal folds lesions usually happen

Vocal Fold Hemorrhage

Usually happens because you burst a blood vessel in the vocal folds

Contact Ulcers

Usually form on arytenoids because of the hard surface, basically a scape and usually the result of excessive adduction force

Reinke’s Edima

Tissue filled with fluid but otherwise healthy, causes lower voice and thicker, bigger vocal folds

Reflux

A condition where stomach acid flows back up into the esophagus, a lot of professional singers struggle with this

Papilloma/Papillomatosis

Caused by HPV, causes growths that can be removed but tend to grow back

Granuloma

Scarring can turn into a run away process, excess scar tissue, grows beyond need to cover injury

Aging Voice

Bowed vocal folds caused by thinning of vocal folds causes breathiness because of space in the middle

Spasmodic Dysphonia

Neurological condition where you have issues with coordinating the vocal folds

Vocal Fold Paresis

A condition where one or both vocal folds have reduced movement due to nerve damage leading to difficulties in voice production

Paralysis

Innervation of muscle gone/fails completely

Paresis

Partial loss of nerve response

PVFM (Paradoxical Vocal Fold Movement)

Vocal folds do the opposite of what you want

VFD (Vocal Fold Dysfunction)

Asthma like symptoms because vocal folds don’t open properly during breathing

Vocal Fold Cancer

Cancer in vocal folds, must be removed